Slideshow: Pope Francis: His life before the papacy

LONDON — A Roman Catholic cardinal who resigned as head of the church in Scotland apologized on Sunday for sexual conduct which he said had "fallen below the standards expected of me."

Cardinal Keith O'Brien was Britain's most senior Catholic cleric until he resigned as archbishop on Feb. 25 and said he would not take part in the conclave to elect a new pope. The announcement followed newspaper allegations of inappropriate behavior with priests.

"I wish to take this opportunity to admit that there have been times that my sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop and cardinal," he said in a statement posted on the Scottish Catholic media office website on Sunday.

"To those I have offended, I apologies and ask forgiveness. To the Catholic Church and people of Scotland, I also apologies. I will now spend the rest of my life in retirement. I will play no further part in the public life of the Catholic Church in Scotland."

O'Brien's resignation as archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh last month was announced a day after the Observer newspaper reported that three priests and one former priest from a Scottish diocese had complained over incidents dating back to the 1980s.

The Observer said O'Brien, an outspoken opponent of moves in Britain to legalize gay marriage, had been reported to the Vatican over the unspecified incidents.

The cardinal initially rejected the allegations and said he was seeking legal advice. He ruled himself out of the conclave to avoid focusing media attention on himself.

Last year, O'Brien's comments labeling gay marriage "a grotesque subversion" landed him with a "Bigot of the Year" award from gay rights group Stonewall.

O'Brien's dramatic resignation and self-exclusion from the conclave added to a sense of crisis in the Catholic Church as it deals with the resignation of Pope Benedict against a backdrop of scandals.

O'Brien would have been Britain's only elector at the conclave. He could have attended despite his resignation as archbishop, but chose not to do so.

Benedict's papacy, which ended on Thursday when he flew away from the Vatican by helicopter, was rocked by scandals over the sexual abuse of children by priests.

David Moir / Reuters file

Cardinal Keith O'Brien sits at a desk in a room in his home in Edinburgh, Scotland February 27, 2013.

LONDON — Britain’s most senior Roman Catholic cleric has resigned amid allegations of inappropriate behavior made by priests.

The Vatican said Monday that Pope Benedict XVI had formally accepted the resignation of Cardinal Keith O’Brien, archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh. The Observer newspaper reported Sunday that the Vatican had been notified of allegations of inappropriate behavior stretching back 30 years.

Three priests in Scotland, as well as a former priest, have lodged complaints to the Vatican's ambassador to Britain and demanded O'Brien's immediate resignation, according to the newspaper.

The 74-year-old cardinal has contested the claims and said he is taking legal advice.

O’Brien had been prepared to resign, citing his age as the cause. He turns 75 on March 17, and the Vatican said the pope had in November accepted a resignation letter under the condition of “nunc pro tunc,” meaning “now for later.”

The Vatican said Monday, however, that the pontiff had now accepted the resignation “definitively.”

Jeff J Mitchell / Getty Images, file

The Vatican confirmed Monday that it had accepted the resignation of Cardinal Keith O'Brien, 74.

It means O'Brien will not take part in the conclave to elect the pope's successor - a process that could begin earlier than March 15 after the rules governing the process were changed in a move announced Monday.

O’Brien said in a statement that it was the pope himself who had decided his resignation would take effect immediately.

“Approaching the age of 75 and at times in indifferent health, I tendered my resignation … some months ago,” he said. “The Holy Father has now decided that my resignation will take effect today.”

O'Brien would have been Britain's only elector in the papal conclave that will gather to decide on a successor to Benedict XVI.

"I will not join them for this conclave in person," O'Brien said. "I do not wish media attention in Rome to be focused on me -- but rather on Pope Benedict XVI and on his successor."

A hint of O’Brien’s accelerated resignation was found Sunday in Edinburgh, when the cardinal did not appear as scheduled to lead a Mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral. Instead, Bishop Stephen Robson made a statement on O’Brien’s behalf.

“A number of allegations of inappropriate behavior have been made against the cardinal,” the statement said. “The cardinal has sought legal advice, and it would be inappropriate to comment at this time. There will be further statements in due course.”

Robson is an auxiliary prelate in the Edinburgh diocese.

O'Brien's statement went on to say: "I have valued the opportunity of serving the people of Scotland and overseas in various ways since becoming a priest. Looking back over my years of ministry: For any good I have been able to do, I thank God. For any failures, I apologize to all whom I have offended."

Controversy
O’Brien had gained a reputation as a hard-line conservative and opponent of gay rights.

In 2009, O’Brien urged the Scottish National Party to abandon plans to give gay couples the same foster-parenting rights as straight ones, calling the idea “misguided” and saying that gays were known for unstable relationships.

Last year, he wrote an editorial in the Daily Telegraph in which he urged people to stand up against a proposal to allow gay marriage, which he said was “madness.” He referred then to same-sex marriage as a “grotesque subversion of a universally accepted human right.”

O’Brien’s stance and other comments led the gay rights group Stonewall UK last year to nominate him for its “Bigot of the Year” award.

“Ten-thousand people overwhelmingly, decisively voted that he should be given that award,” said Colin MacFarlane, director of Stonewall Scotland. “We don’t call people a bigot because they disagree with us. We reserve that for people who use the kind of language the cardinal has used. He has gone out of his way. It has not been fair discourse. His language has been cruel, hurtful and pernicious.”

The group's response to news of O'Brien's resignation was unsurprising.

“We trust there will now be a full investigation into the serious allegations made against Cardinal O’Brien,” MacFarlane said. “We hope his successor will show a little more Christian charity towards openly gay people than the cardinal did himself.”

Two weeks ago, the pope’s brother, the Rev. Georg Ratzinger, said scandals had troubled Benedict XVI and may have contributed to his decision to retire.

He specifically mentioned that Benedict had been bothered by the "Vatileaks" scandal in which a butler leaked secret documents, as well as the "the relationship to the Pius Brotherhood."

That organization, formally known as the Society of St. Pius X, fell into a harsh public spotlight in December when its leader, Bishop Bernard Fellay, said Jews were "the enemies of the church." His comment drew criticism from all corners of the church and from the public in general.

Georg Ratzinger said he thought his brother had handled those problems well but that they had taken their toll.

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This story was originally published on Mon Feb 25, 2013 6:55 AM EST

Justin Tallis / AFP - Getty Images

Former British energy minister Chris Huhne and partner Carina Trimingham leave a London court Monday after he pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice. Huhne resigned his cabinet post after being charged last year, and he pleaded not guilty in a hearing Jan. 28. Now he faces jail time and said he would resign his seat in Parliament.

LONDON — Former British Cabinet member Chris Huhne pleaded guilty Monday to perverting the course of justice by persuading his then wife in 2003 to accept penalty points on her driver's licence for a speeding offense he had committed.

A senior member of the Liberal Democrats, the smaller party in Britain's ruling coalition, Huhne resigned from his post as secretary of state for energy and climate change in February 2012, when he was charged.

Paul Hackett / Reuters

Vicky Pryce, the ex-wife of former British energy secretary Chris Huhne, leaves court in London on Monday. She also pleaded not guilty to perverting justice.

He had remained a member of parliament but said after Monday's court hearing in London that he would quit his seat.

Huhne remains free on unconditional bail pending his sentencing, which Judge Nigel Sweeney said would take place at an unspecified later date.

The judge signaled to Huhne that he was likely to face a term in jail.

"You should have no illusions whatsoever as to the sort of sentence that you are likely to receive," Sweeney told Huhne after he entered a guilty plea.

"Understood?" the judge asked Huhne, who nodded from the glass-walled dock at the back of the courtroom.

At a court hearing a week ago, Huhne had pleaded not guilty to the same offense. His ex-wife, Vicky Pryce, who was charged with the same offense at the same time, had pleaded not guilty at an earlier court hearing.

Outside the court, Huhne said he would be standing down from his parliamentary seat in Eastleigh in southern England.

"Having taken responsibility for something which happened 10 years ago, the only proper course of action for me is now to resign my Eastleigh seat in parliament," Huhne told reporters.

A heavyweight among Liberal Democrats, Huhne narrowly lost to Nick Clegg in a 2007 election to lead the party. Clegg is now deputy prime minister in a coalition government led by Conservatives.

Describing Huhne as "a big beast," Clegg recently told reporters he would like to see the ex-minister return to the "top table" of British politics were he to be cleared of the charges.

ROME – Franco Fiorito, a member of the regional council of Lazio, the Italian region that includes Rome, was known ironically among his friends as Batman. It was a nickname he earned when he managed to fall off a Harley Davidson still on a kickstand.

But rather than a superhero, he looks like an actor out of “The Sopranos” with his slicked-back hairstyle, striped double-breasted suit, bulky figure and bigger than life personality.   

Fiorito, a member of Silvio Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party (PDL), was accused earlier this month of embezzling at least $1.5 million of public funds to pay for everything from oyster dinners, to hotels, aides and apartments.

Fiorito, who has since resigned, fought the allegations by telling investigators that fellow party members behaved worse than he did – putting the spotlight on regional president Renata Polverini.

The scandal proved too much for Polverini, who resigned on Monday, and damaged the reputation of Berlusconi’s already weakened party.

She denied allegations of any wrong-doing on her part, but admitted that the scandal had exposed infighting within the PDL party and had stripped the regional council of some legitimacy.   

But most importantly, it stands as a symbol of a political class that has lost touch with the electorate, and carries on living a lavish lifestyle financed with public funds at a time when most Italians struggle to get by.

“Why did they call him Batman? He sounds more like the joker to me,” said Carla Cecchini, a receptionist from Rome who was waiting at a bus stop in Rome on Wednesday morning. “He is not even that smart. We know they are all thieves, but this guy didn’t even try to hide it. He is shameless.”

Toga party photos
Apparently Fiorito is not as brazen as another member of the regional council.

Only days ago, pictures emerged of a lavish toga party organized in 2010 by Carlo de Romanis, a 32-year- old member of Berlusconi’s party.  

Romanis organized the party to celebrate his election to the regional council and his return to Rome after eight years working at the European Parliament in Brussels.

The theme of the party, “Ulysses returns home and fights his enemies,” was taken seriously by his 2,000 guests. They showed up dressed up as ancient Roman maidservants, gladiators, patricians in laurel wreaths and minotaurs, drinking from ancient-looking jars. Pictures emerged of guests feeding each other grapes, as well as men wearing pig masks fondling female guests.

 A party worthy of the last days of ancient Rome, when the narcissistic and decadent elite kept enjoying a lavish lifestyle while the empire was falling apart all around them.

The similarities might not be so far-fetched. Even though Carlo “Ulysses De Romanis” insists the $30,000 he paid for the party came from his own pocket, it still upset many Italians who are tired of seeing the political elite enjoying the lifestyle of emperors while they feel the strain of the recent austerity measures and the economic crisis.

Alex Biasco, a DJ in Milan, told NBC News that the Italian public is partly to blame as well. He said they like to complain about the widespread abuse of office, without acting to bring about any changes.

“Look at the Spanish: they fill the squares in Madrid to demand the resignation of unfit politicians,” said Biasco.  “While in Italy we have had politicians who stole for decades, who are corrupt to the core…and yet, Italians only fill their squares when their soccer teams win.”

Luca Orsenigo, a 38-year-old telecom manager from Milan, had a similar complaint. 

“We got to this point because we deserve it. Instead of going to prison, these people are invited to defend themselves on talk-shows," said Orsenigo, referring to the many TV appearances Fiorito enjoyed after the scandal broke. "As long as these people go unpunished, nothing will change”

Cocaine bust
More proof of widespread corruption among Italian governmental institutions came on Tuesday, when the head of the postal service in the Italian Senate was arrested for cocaine trafficking, police said.

Orlando Ranaldi, 53, is accused of being part of a criminal gang 10 Italians and Albanians who ran a cocaine ring in southern Rome. While not a politician, Orlando held a managerial position in Italy’s upper house of parliament.  

 "I only hope that he didn't push inside the Senate," Senator Felice Belisario of the Italy of Values party told Reuters.

Roberta, a housewife from Rome who gave only her first name, jumped to her own conclusions.   

“They are all living the high life, and I can’t believe the guy wasn’t doing ‘favors’ to the political elite,” she said.  

The recent revelations of Champagne-filled toga parties, embezzlement of public funds and cocaine heists have only contributed to widening the gap between the political elite and the electorate. 

“Once again we are showing the world how corrupt we are.  But Italians, thank God, are not all like Batman and Ulysses,” Alessandra Scolaro, a website designer and member of the People of Freedom party from the Veneto region, told NBC News. “The best Italians are those who wake up every morning and go to work. And those who make us proud by raising the bar of Italian creativity in the arts and fashion industries. This is the real Italy.”

While Italians aren’t likely to descend to the squares to protest and try to get rid of the political class the hard way, they will have the opportunity to bring change in the general elections next spring. 

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CHENGDU, China -- A former police chief at the center of China's biggest political scandal in decades admitted attempting to defect to the United States, and did not contest charges of bribery and illegal surveillance at his trial on Tuesday, a court official said.

Wang Lijun, ex-police chief of southwestern Chongqing municipality, sought to conceal the murder of a British businessman by the wife of one of the nation's most senior and ambitious politicians, Bo Xilai, according to an official account of the trial.

But prosecutors acknowledged that Wang's cooperation was central to cracking the murder case and exposing leads to major crimes committed by unnamed others, indicating he will likely get a lenient sentence when the verdict is announced in about 10 days.

"The accused Wang Lijun voluntarily gave himself up after committing the crime of defection, and then gave a truthful account of the main crimes involved in his defection," court spokesman Yang Yuquan said, referring to Wang's dramatic flight to the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu in February.

Wang "exposed leads concerning major criminal offences by others, and played an important role in investigating and dealing with the cases concerned," Yang said. "According to law, his punishment may be reduced."

The charges against Wang carry sentences ranging from a lengthy jail term to the death penalty.

Foreign reporters were barred from attending the trial amid tight security around the courthouse on a busy Chengdu street, and instead were briefed by a court official at a nearby hotel.

Strong arm of the law
As police chief of Chongqing, Wang was known as the strong arm of the law, energetically carrying out Bo's crackdown on crime and gangs.

But "he conducted technical surveillance on many people many times without getting permission, or by falsifying permission," Yang said. "This gravely jeopardizes socialist law and violated legal rights of Chinese citizens."

With wife's conviction, what is next for China's Bo Xilai?

Wang, shown on state television looking relaxed during the hearing, was also charged with receiving some $484,000 in unspecified "money and property" in return for securing benefits for unidentified people. Yang did not give details of the gifts or from whom Wang received them.

Wang's trial was closely watched for any evidence that Bo had ordered Wang to cover up his wife's involvement in the murder -- a sign that Bo himself could be next to face trial.

Though the official accounts of the trial did not mention Wang's disgraced former boss Bo, the broad range of charges against Wang and the mention that he had exposed the crimes of others might mean that Bo is not off the hook.

So far, Bo has only been accused of breaching internal party discipline.

The Bo scandal has rocked Beijing, exposing rifts within the party -- elements of which are strong supporters of Bo's populist, left-leaning policies -- at a time when China is preparing for a once-in-a-decade leadership change.

Wife of disgraced Chinese leader gets death sentence with reprieve

Wang, 52, lifted the lid on the murder and cover-up of a British businessman in February when he went to a U.S. consulate and, according to sources, told envoys there about the murder that would later bring down Bo.

Within two months of Wang's 24-hour visit to the consulate, Bo was sacked as party boss and from the ruling Communist Party's Politburo and Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, was accused of poisoning the businessman. Gu has since been given a suspended death sentence for the killing in late 2011.

Shrouded in secrecy
Wang's trial started on Monday in Chengdu, the city where Wang staged his dramatic flight to the consulate, with an unannounced closed-door session to hear charges of defection and abuse of power, which involved states secrets, Yang said.  

More China coverage from NBCNews.com's Behind The Wall

The trial continued behind closed doors on Tuesday in the imposing, gray stone Chengdu City Intermediate People's Court.

Prosecutors said Wang "clearly knew that Bogu Kailai was a major suspect in a case of intentional homicide, and deliberately concealed that so she would not be prosecuted," Yang said. Bogu is Gu's official, but rarely used, last name.

However, Wang decided to later reopen the investigation.

"The defendant exposed other people's serious crimes and played a crucial role in the investigations of relevant cases, making a major contribution," Yang said.

Chinese experts believe Wang may receive a jail term from 15 years to life, but if the death penalty is imposed it would be commuted, as in the Gu Kailai case.

Scandal sends China's netizens into feeding frenzy

"Wang Lijun is a hero," said a Chengdu shopkeeper who gave his name as Zhong. "He's like heroes of the Song dynasty, fighting crime and corruption."

Bo had been considered a strong candidate for the next top leadership body, which is expected to be unveiled at the party's 18th congress next month. Vice President Xi Jinping is seen as all but certain to take over as party chief and inherit the challenge of trying to heal internal wounds.

Xi is expected to succeed Hu Jintao as president in March.

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Jason Lee / Reuters

Chongqing Municipality Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai waves as he attends the opening ceremony of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in March 2012.

BEIJING -- Monday's murder conviction for the wife of Bo Xilai, once one of China's most powerful men, may have brought to an end the investigation into the death of British businessman Neil Heywood but it left in question the fate of her husband, who is being pursued for party "disciplinary violations."

Is Bo the next target of a deepening struggle? Or will he be spared from harsher punishments? Leading China analysts have varied responses but there is unanimity that Gu Kailai's conviction was also a nail in the coffin of her politician husband's career.

Wife of disgraced Chinese leader gets death sentence with reprieve

'Politically carbonized'
To counter Bo's "continuing popularity" among some segments of the population, China's Communist Party attempted to depict the case in terms of the most heinous of crimes -- murder, said Joseph Fewsmith, a leading expert on Chinese politics at Boston University and author of several books on China.

"It certainly is a case of murder, but in a sense, the killing of Heywood allows the party to sidestep all the other issues -- the way Bo conducted his 'strike black' campaign, the so-called Chongqing model and his political ambitions -- by focusing on the murder," Fewsmith said.

Strike black refers to Bo's anti-corruption and anti-crime campaign that implicated millionaires, local officials, police officers and gangsters. Under the Chongqing model that Bo advocated, the state increased its role in society and led huge public projects.

"Despite the strong evidence of criminal activity (murder), it seems likely that many will continue to read this case as part of a political struggle," Fewsmith said.

And in this political struggle, China's leftist elite -- known as neo-cons -- are the likely losers, said Professor Jean-Pierre Cabestan, head of government and international studies at Hong Kong Baptist University and a prominent scholar on China.

Closed-door murder trial: Wife of ousted politician Bo Xilai faces China court

"Some neo-cons may have tried or be willing to save Bo Xilai, in order to serve their own interests. I am inclined to think they will fail, because both the outside world and the Chinese blogosphere know too much about this terrible couple, their family and their wealth," Cabestan told NBC News.

"In other words, Bo is a liability, he is worn out, he is politically carbonized," he added.

'Chongqing model' dead or alive?
"But we should not jump to the conclusion that the reformists will enjoy an upper hand in the coming months," Cabestan said, adding that the Chongqing model that Bo championed was not sustainable.

Stringer / China / Reuters

China's former Chongqing Municipality Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai (R) and his wife Gu Kailai (L), who was found guilty of murdering a British businessman.

"It's too expensive for the state, too hostile to private businesses and too distant from the rule of law," Cabestan said.

"But the pro-state, pro-state-owned enterprises leaders have not been totally defeated and there are so many vested interests around the perpetuation of a strong and entrepreneurial party-state," Cabestan said.

Professor Bo Zhiyue, expert on Chinese politics at the National University of Singapore, agreed that Bo was finished politically, but argued that his governing style was not necessarily dead.

"With Bo as a major competitor out of the way, the new leadership could be more stable," Bo Zhiyue told NBC News.

"However, they can't avoid using some of Bo's programs in its new policies because Bo's Chongqing model has really provided a lot of good experiments for China's future development, in particular with regards to income inequality, public housing, and new growth model."

Scandal sends China's netizens into feeding frenzy

China's leadership is acutely aware of the growing income inequality that the country's economic prosperity has produced, with newly wealthy political and business elites prompting resentment among the majority.

Indeed, official and online media have given coverage to a growing number of grassroots protests driven by the discontent felt by those left behind in the economic race, or those alienated by the corrupt collusion of wealth and power.

"There is consensus that the government needs to allocate more resources to address social injustice and income inequality," according to Li Mingjiang, China politics professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, noting the efforts of China's leadership in this regard.

"In that sense, the Chongqing model is not dead at all," he told NBC News.

Appeasing the poor
The government has been trying appease many people in undeveloped and poor regions of Western China, for example, by increasing state investments in these regions. Nevertheless, the consensus among China watchers is that Bo went too far in his politics and governing style. 

More China coverage from NBCNews.com's Behind The Wall

"Bo Xilai (was) too extreme in his policy in Chongqing, particularly his Cultural Revolution style political campaign," Li said. "These extreme policies are dead, at least for the coming years."

However, China's ruling elite had to deal with the fact that technology made it impossible to keep the case under wraps.  

"The amount of information and the intensity of discussion that were revealed in the social media exerted a lot of pressure on the party to release more information about the Bo Xilai case partly in order to forestall and clear rumors," Li added.

"The party has to be very careful not to unnecessarily antagonize Bo's supporters and sympathizers because these people are vocal and scrutinizing ... various forms of social media," he said.

To Cabestan, Bo's "political death or carbonization have been in part caused by the Internet and the speed with which outside information and rumors have circulated in China."

In sum, the experts with whom NBC News spoke agreed that while Bo may be neutralized through the case against his wife and the diciplinary measure he faces, the country's leadership will likely tread carefully given Bo's enduring popularity.

So the suspended death sentence handed down to Bo Xilai's wife signifies a "decision made by the highest leadership," said Professor Jerome Cohen, a veteran authority on Chinese law at New York University.

"The state leaders know that Bo Xilai is still very popular and has lot of support, and to that extent, the court's decision is the most popular option and the best compromise they could have come out with," he added.

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HEFEI, China -- China pressed ahead Friday with an offensive against ousted politician Bo Xilai, a day after the murder trial of his wife, with a separate prosecution of four police officers accused of trying to cover up the killing that she allegedly carried out.

The dismissed officers went on trial for "bending the law to show favoritism" by shielding Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, from an inquiry into the death of Briton Neil Heywood.

Gu stood trial for poisoning the businessman over a financial transaction that went sour, according to a court statement. She did not dispute the murder charge during Thursday's seven-hour, closed-door trial hearing and a verdict will soon be delivered, the statement said.

Heywood's death in November and its alleged cover-up in Bo's stronghold of Chongqing, the southwestern municipality he ran, was central to the torrent of events that toppled him from the upper echelons of Chinese political power and exposed the ruling Communist Party to its worst upheaval in decades.

Legal noose tightens
Bo was one of China's most powerful and charismatic politicians until he was ousted.

The legal noose is tightening fast on Bo's wife and police involved in investigating the murder case, suggesting there is a danger Bo could himself face charges of masterminding a cover-up and could risk a lengthy jail term.

The South China Morning Post said Friday that Bo's former Chongqing police chief, Wang Lijun, would stand trial as early as next week in the southwestern city of Chengdu. Wang sought temporary refuge in Chengdu's U.S. consulate in February after sources told Reuters that he told Bo that Gu was a murder suspect.

Wang's dramatic flight to the U.S. mission triggered the murder scandal that quickly led to Bo's downfall. Until then, Heywood's death had been officially attributed to a possible heart attack brought on by excessive alcohol consumption.

Chinese media stuck to the terse official account of Gu's trial on Friday, despite avid public interest in this scandal that has exposed the fusion of wealth and privilege in China's political elite, and exposed rifts in the party.

Bo, 63, has not been a focus of the proceedings so far. But most experts believe the trial and almost certain conviction of his wife Gu and the four police officers is a prelude to his punishment, which could include a criminal trial.

Reuters

This photo shows Bo Xilai, British businessman Neil Heywood and Bo's wife Gu Kailai.

Little delay likely in announcing verdict
The court in the eastern Chinese city Hefei did not say when it would announce any verdict against Gu. But the usual wait was about two weeks, Chen Guangwu, a criminal defense attorney who has followed the Chongqing scandal closely, told Reuters.

"But they won't delay for too long, because this case is being heard in order to pave the way for dealing with Bo Xilai himself," said Chen, who is based in eastern Shandong province.

"This case is in part about testing the waters for that. That is, they will sentence her and see what reaction there is in society and public opinion," he said.

Wife of ousted China politician charged with Briton's murder

Bo's downfall has stirred more public division than that of any other party leader for more than 30 years. To leftist supporters, Bo became a rallying figure for efforts to reimpose party control over dizzying and unequal market growth. To liberal critics, Bo was a dangerous opportunist who yearned to impose his harsh policies on the entire country.

As the four police officers went on trial, also in Hefei, Chinese authorities cordoned off the courthouse and excluded foreign reporters from the hearing. Vans parked nearby were bristling with video surveillance equipment.

A court spokeswoman said the case would begin at 8:30 a.m. (7:30 p.m. ET Thursday). "It's open to the public but I'm afraid all the places are full at this time," she said, according to Reuters.

It was unclear whether the case began as scheduled.

The four men on trial -- Guo Weiguo, Li Yang, Wang Pengfei and Wang Zhi -- were senior police officers in Chongqing who allegedly sought to stymie an investigation into Heywood's death in a hilltop hotel villa overlooking Chongqing.

On Thursday, a court official said prosecutors believed Bo's wife, Gu, and a family aide, Zhang Xiaojun, killed Heywood by pouring poison down his throat after a business dispute led Gu to believe Heywood had threatened her son, Bo Guagua, then a student at Harvard University.

NYT: Increasingly outspoken military alarms China's leaders

During Gu's seven-hour hearing on Thursday, it was alleged Heywood had written a letter to Guagua, threatening to "destroy" him, a source who had been briefed on the hearing told Reuters. Heywood and Guagua had fallen into dispute over Heywood's demand for a fee to help arrange a $200 million financial transaction, the source told Reuters.

Guagua, believed to be in the United States after graduating this year from Harvard University, denied there was such a deal of that value but appeared to confirm the letter's existence.

"I cannot comment on any of the details (of the letter), but I can disclose that there is no such thing as either possessing or transferring" $200 million, Guagua wrote in an e-mail sent to Reuters.

Scandal sends China's netizens into feeding frenzy

Political infighting
The scandal has drawn attention to political infighting that China prefers to keep secret and comes at a time when the government is preparing for a once-a-decade political transition — at the 18th party congress later this year, where it will install a new generation of leaders.

More China coverage from NBCNews.com's Behind The Wall

Bo, the son of a revolutionary veteran, was once a contender for one of those top jobs. But his overt maneuvering to reach the highest echelons of the Communist Party angered some leaders, as did his bombastic campaigns to bust organized crime and promote communist culture while trampling civil liberties and reviving memories of the chaotic Cultural Revolution.

Bo is in the hands of the party's internal discipline and inspection commission, which is expected to issue a statement about his infractions. That would open the way for a court trial with charges possibly including obstructing police work and abuse of power. Thus far, Bo has been accused only of grievous but unspecified rules violations.

Reuters and The Assiocated press contributed to this report.

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Updated at 8:40 a.m. ET: HEFEI, China -- The woman at the center of China's most politically explosive trial in three decades did not contest charges of murder on Thursday in a hearing that lasted just seven hours and could determine the fate of former politician Bo Xilai.

Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, chose not to contest the charge of murdering British businessman Neil Heywood, whose alleged secretive dealings with the couple fuelled a scandal exposing the intimate nexus between money and power in China's elite.

A formal verdict will be delivered at a later date, a court official said, recounting details of the closed-door hearing.

CCTV via Reuters TV

Gu Kailai, center, appears at the Hefei Intermediate People's Court on Thursday.

The dramatic account of Heywood's death by poisoning is also likely to sound the final death knell to Bo's political career, even as sympathizers cast him as the victim of a push to oust him and discredit his left-leaning agenda.

"The accused Bogu (Gu) Kailai and Zhang Xiaojun did not raise objections to the accusations of intentional homicide," the official, Tang Yigan, said after the hearing, referring also to Gu's co-accused, an aide to the family. 

State television showed Gu, wearing a dark pant suit and white shirt, being led into the courtroom and being seated in the dock. She appeared to have put on weight since she was detained earlier this year. 

Wife of ousted China politician charged with Briton's murder

Reuters

This photo shows Bo Xilai, British businessman Neil Heywood and Bo's wife Gu Kailai.

The court official quoted prosecutors as saying Gu and Zhang had killed Heywood with a poisoned drink in far southwestern Chongqing last November, after a business dispute between Gu and Heywood. Bo ruled the vast municipality until he was sacked in March just before the murder scandal burst into the open. 

As a result of the dispute with Heywood, Gu had become convinced Heywood was a threat to her son, Bo Guagua, the official said without elaborating. 

"Gu Kailai believed that Neil Heywood had threatened the personal safety of her son Bo (Guagua) and decided to kill him," the official added, reading from a statement to a packed news conference of dozens of reporters who had been barred entry to the courtroom in the eastern city of Hefei. 

The aide, Zhang, had driven Heywood to Chongqing last November from Beijing and prepared a poison which was to be put later into a drink of water. Later that day, Heywood met Gu at a hotel, where he became drunk and then asked for water. 

"She poured a poison into his mouth," the official said. 

Gu was represented by government-appointed lawyers. Her trial is seen by many Chinese as part of a push against her husband Bo, who made powerful enemies as he campaigned to join the next generation of top central leaders.

Bo was formerly considered a contender for the inner sanctum of power -- the party's Politburo Standing Committee -- in a once-in-a-decade leadership transition that is currently under way. The new leadership is expected to be unveiled in October.

Earlier, a British diplomat was seen entering the court, but did not comment. International media were not allowed into the court.

Censorship
State censorship of Internet chatter on the trial was swifter than normal on Thursday. Users of China's popular Twitter-like service Sina Weibo played cat and mouse with authorities to discuss the case and used word play to try to get around the controls.

NYT: Increasingly outspoken military alarms China's leaders 

Police dragged two protesters away from outside the Hefei Intermediate People's Court in eastern China. The two Bo supporters kicked and yelled as they were put into an unmarked car after they had appeared outside the building, condemning the trial as a sham and singing patriotic songs that were the trademark of Bo's populist leadership style.

"I don't believe it. This case was decided well in advance," Hu Jiye, a middle-aged man wearing a T-shirt and baseball cap, told foreign reporters at the rear of the court building, which was cordoned off by dozens of police standing in heavy rain.

Eugene Hoshiko / AP

Police officers stand guard outside a court where the murder trial of Gu Kailai was held on Thursday in Hefei, China.

Hu and his friend were then shoved by police officers into a car. His companion, also a middle-aged man, struggled and yelled, "Why are you taking me? Why are you taking me?"

But many ordinary Chinese citizens were unaware of the trial, or felt that it had little impact on their lives. 

"We are not really interested in the Bo Xilai and Gu Kailai cases because they are far removed from us, we are very busy with our daily lives," Beijing construction manager Ji Jiaminghe told NBC News. 

"The lesson of the Bo Xilai case is that it was wrong to go against the political mainstream," Ji said, even as he acknowledged that he loved to sing and listen to the "Red Songs" that Bo promoted. 

Communist Party aristocracy
The trial of Gu, the glamorous daughter of ruling Communist Party aristocracy, is the most sensational since the conviction of the Gang of Four more than 30 years ago for crimes during the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution.

Gu and family aide Zhang Xiaojun face the death penalty if convicted of poisoning the former family friend.

Police sources initially claimed Gu had poisoned Heywood in a disagreement over an illicit financial transaction she had wanted him to help her complete, and they portrayed Gu as a greedy wife who was translating her husband's connections into dollars.

Sources: Briton killed after threat to expose Chinese leader's wife

But Gu's alleged personal motive for the killing --  that Gu believed Heywood was a threat to her son -- may count as a mitigating circumstance and help Gu avoid execution.

Any hesitance to put Gu to death would make sense, according to Hu Xingdou, an outspoken blogger and frequent government critic, told NBC News. 

Scandal sends China's netizens into feeding frenzy

"The death penalty is not likely precisely because a political struggle is involved and people don't like political rivals being executed," he said.

In announcing the indictment about two weeks ago, the official Xinhua News Agency made clear the government considers the verdict a foregone conclusion.

"The facts of the two defendants' crime are clear, and the evidence is irrefutable and substantial," it said.

The trial and sentencing of both Gu and Zhang are widely seen as a prelude to a possible criminal prosecution of Bo, who is being detained for violating party discipline -- an accusation that covers corruption, abuse of power and other misdeeds.

Bo, who was a favorite of party leftists and promoted himself as a friend of the poor and an enemy of corruption, was sacked as Chongqing party chief in March after his police chief, Wang Lijun, identified Gu as a suspect in Heywood's death.

Press behaved 'appallingly'?
On Thursday morning, there was no sign of Gu's elderly mother, nor of any members of Heywood's family in or around the courtroom.

In London, Heywood's mother accused the press of spreading lies about her son. "You've all behaved so appallingly," Ann Heywood said Wednesday outside her home.

British media have suggested Neil Heywood was involved in money laundering, worked for British intelligence or that he was Gu's lover. Ann Heywood claimed to know more about the case than was in the public domain, but she wasn't specific and said the truth would come out eventually.

 More China coverage from NBCNews.com's Behind the Wall blog

Before his ouster in the spring, Bo, also the son of a revolutionary veteran, was one of China's most powerful and charismatic politicians. But his overt maneuvering for a top political job, as well as high-profile campaigns to bust organized crime and promote communist culture -- while trampling over civil liberties and reviving memories of the chaotic Cultural Revolution in the process -- angered some leaders.

Bo is the first Politburo member to be removed from office in five years and the scandal kicked up talk of a political struggle involving Bo supporters intent on derailing succession plans calling for Vice President Xi Jinping to lead the party for the next decade.

Bo is in the hands of the party's internal discipline and inspection commission, which is expected to issue a statement about his infractions. That would open the way for a court trial with charges possibly including obstructing police work and abuse of power. Thus far, Bo has been accused only of grievous but unspecified rules violations.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Giuseppe Cacace / AFP - Getty Images

Pope Benedict XVI waves as he leaves after a celebration at Milan's Duomo as part of the 7th World Meeting of Families on Saturday.

ROME – The birds offered the first hint of danger in the tiny Vatican State. On Jan. 30, Pope Benedict XVI released the traditional two doves as “a sign of peace to the city of Rome and to the world” from his papal apartments. But instead of flying away, one hesitated for a long spell before flying off, and the other made a quick U-turn and flew right back into the room.

Could it be that they were scared of the crows hovering overhead? 

A crow, “corvo” in Italian, is a pejorative term for informants. And these days, there is no more famous informant than Paolo Gabriele, the pope’s butler who has recently been exposed as the source of confidential memos leaked to the Italian media since the beginning of the year. ) He was arrested last week, and he must have thanked God the days of the Inquisition are long gone; instead of being burned at the stake, he is being detained and questioned in a comfortable “security room” within the Vatican walls.  

The first question that investigators will probably be asking is if the butler was acting alone? Even the history of Christianity suggests that Judas didn’t act alone. So is there a Pontius Pilate or a Herod in this story? 

On Sunday, days after his arrest, more memos were leaked to the Italian daily La Repubblica, giving credit to the suspicion that Gabriele was just a pawn in a game of thrones in the Holy See, the “postman” at the service of much bigger players trying to shake up the very core of the Vatican’s center of power. 

New Vatican documents leaked; source calls pope's butler a 'scapegoat

But whoever the “judases” are, they didn’t betray the pope for monetary gain, but according to their own (anonymous) admission, they did it to “clean up house” and expose the abuse of power that is consumed on a daily basis within the Vatican walls by the closest aides of the pope. 

The main target of the memos is thought to be Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican’s Secretary of State. He is accused by many in the Vatican bureaucracy known as the Curia of wielding too much power. Many of the leaked memos were directly or indirectly linked to him, and reveal an almost dictatorial role within the Vatican that goes beyond his role as the Vatican’s “prime minister.”  

Pool / Reuters

Pope Benedict XVI, the Vatican State Secretary Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, center, and the bishop of Milan Angelo Scola, right, attend a concert at Scala's Theatre in Milan June 1, 2012.

On Monday evening, Bertone spoke out for the first time against the scandal that has been nicknamed “Vatileaks” during an interview with TG1, one of Italy’s biggest newscasts, and he didn’t mince his words. He called the leaks a "ferocious, biting and organized attack on the pope.” Bertone said however that the pope "is not letting himself be scared by these attacks, whatever their nature."

Benedict has stood by him so far, and even sent out a strong message of unity by parading him along on his trip to the northern Italian city of Milan over the past weekend.   

But while Benedict and Cardinal Bertone try their best to prove that they are still in control despite the embarrassing scandal, the crows, it seems, are still flying overhead. 

More on the Vatican scandal

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